Finite element analysis of geometrical parameter effects on coupling in polycarbonate and acrylic

This study investigates the mechanical coupling behaviour of polycarbonate/acrylic
laminated beam. The laminate were tested with different variation of stacking
sequence of the two materials. The laminate’s fixed dimension is 300mm x 30mm x
12mm. It will be analysed under bending and tensile loads. The Finite element
simulations of the configurations were conducted using ANSYS Student 2025 R1. The
beam was set up as a cantilever beam with a fixed support at the end of them, while a
point load ranging from 4.91 N to 9.81 N was applied at the free end. Both linear and
nonlinear static analyses were performed. Theoretical calculations of equivalent
bending stiffness and deflection were used to validate the numerical results.
The results showed that symmetric stacking sequences exhibited minimal mechanical
coupling behaviours, with displacement ratios close to zero, while unsymmetric
configurations showed noticeable coupling under bending. Laminates with lower
bending stiffness produced larger deflections in the Y-axis and larger displacement
ratios. Nonlinear bending analysis captured coupling behavior in all configurations, as
reflected by the displacement ratios, whereas linear bending analysis predicted near
zero displacement ratios for symmetric laminate stacks. Under tensile loading, the
difference between linear and nonlinear results was very small, and both showed a
similar displacement ratio trend, symmetric stacks had ratios close to zero, while
unsymmetric stacks had larger ratios. Overall, stacking sequence was found to be the
main factor influencing the mechanical coupling behaviour of the laminate.